CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Sometimes it takes only a little bit of kindness to get a person back on their feet again.
Jericho House specializes in that type of kindness.
For instance, Manager Freda Cutlip recalls a snowy, late November day when she heard a knock on the Jericho House door.
"Before me stood a young couple. They began at once to ask me 'please, can you take us in; we have no place to go.' Suddenly, I realized something was sitting on the porch at their feet ... it was a little one in a car seat with a blanket spread over the carrier to catch the snowflakes."
Fortunately, one of the St. Albans facility's four rooms had recently been vacated, so Cutlip was able to show them immediately to their room. The room hadn't yet been cleaned, Cutlip apologized, but the family set about cleaning the room and setting up a baby bed that had been in the Jericho House basement.
"The young man had a job out West when the winter was over," she explained, but the long, cold winter sprawled out ahead of them.
The kindness and warmth of Jericho House paid off for the family. Cutlip has since been in contact them.
"They have settled into their new home and have welcomed a new addition to their family," she said.
CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- Sometimes it takes only a little bit of kindness to get a person back on their feet again.
Jericho House specializes in that type of kindness.
For instance, Manager Freda Cutlip recalls a snowy, late November day when she heard a knock on the Jericho House door.
"Before me stood a young couple. They began at once to ask me 'please, can you take us in; we have no place to go.' Suddenly, I realized something was sitting on the porch at their feet ... it was a little one in a car seat with a blanket spread over the carrier to catch the snowflakes."
Fortunately, one of the St. Albans facility's four rooms had recently been vacated, so Cutlip was able to show them immediately to their room. The room hadn't yet been cleaned, Cutlip apologized, but the family set about cleaning the room and setting up a baby bed that had been in the Jericho House basement.
"The young man had a job out West when the winter was over," she explained, but the long, cold winter sprawled out ahead of them.
The kindness and warmth of Jericho House paid off for the family. Cutlip has since been in contact them.
"They have settled into their new home and have welcomed a new addition to their family," she said.
In addition to Jericho House's four rooms, the house also offers a two-bedroom apartment for people in need.
Plus, with money raised through the Gazette Charities Christmas Fund, Cutlip is able to help people who are about to have their utilities turned off.
"These people have jobs, but they also have families and there's just not enough money to go around," she explained.
Please consider a donation to the Gazette Charities Christmas Fund, so the fund can continue to help places like Jericho House and the young couple who needed nothing more than a warm place to stay and a little kindness.
To donate (see donation coupon), make payment to the Gazette Charities Christmas Fund at 1001 Virginia St. E., Charleston, WV 25301.
The Gazette covers all costs of administering the fund. All donations go to the charities supported by the fund.
To make an online donation, log on to wvgazette.com and click on the Christmas Fund logo.
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